Student Projects

On this page we showcase a selection of AMADEUS students’ school projects and work.

Grade 12 Compositions

Dear AMADEUS community,

I am very happy to present the compositions of our current Grade 12 Music cohort, which you will find below. Over the course of the two-year programme, IB DP Music students engage in an in-depth study of music in which they learn how to examine different repertoires and enrich their performative and compositional skills. All compositions (with the exception of The Abyss) were written in Musescore, a notation software that generates an audio file/performance of the students’ work. The Abyss, is an electronic music piece created in Ableton, a digital audio workstation.

I hope you will enjoy these pieces as much I have. For an optimal listening experience, I recommend the use of external speakers or headphones. My sincere congratulations to Emily, Rabbina, Navid, and Laurenz for their hard work and beautiful music!

Paolo Tornitore, DP Music Teacher at AMADEUS Vienna

NAVID OWJI

I have always found the combination of piano and cello to be very elegant and intriguing. This inspired me to compose my first piece, Drowning in Thoughts, a composition in C minor written in rondo form (ABACA). In this piece, I have portrayed my thoughts and emotions through the melodic dialogue between the two instruments.

Dancing with the Wind is a piece that uses Middle Eastern rhythmic/melodic patterns, adapted to a western type of instrumentation and arrangement. I am originally from Iran and these types of patterns have always been an influential factor in my style of composing. For this piece, I used the time signature of 7/4 which can be usually found in Middle Eastern music. The pattern that I chose within this time signature is 2, 2, 3, which whilst performing at a high tempo, creates an elegant flow within the piece. I adopted the following structure A, B, C, B, D, A because I wanted to develop a simple phrase, have a solo section, and go back to the main simple rhythmic pattern at the end once again.

Drowning in Thoughts by Navid Owji

Dancing with the Wind by Navid Owji

RABBINA UZYKHANOVA

I am very proud of my two compositions Waltz and Bloom.

Having no previous experience with composing, it was quite an exciting challenge for me when I began to write my own music at the beginning of Grade 11. My goal was to compose two musical pieces of different styles.

Waltz is a composition for piano solo in C sharp minor. The piece is in a rondo form (ABACA) with the main theme in the introduction, a new melody in the second part, a modulation in the third, a culmination in the fourth, and eventually coming back to the first theme in the end. The main theme gives a mystical sense that travels throughout the whole piece.

Bloom is a composition for harp, violin, and cello. The piece is structured in 4 parts, each consisting of 16 bars. I tried to use flowing transitions between sections, with the melody line being alternated between the instruments.

Waltz by Rabbina Uzykhanova

Bloom by Rabbina Uzykhanova

LAURENZ HEINDL

The Abyss is a psychedelic electronic dance track. The piece features techno, moombahton, and trance elements. The first drop is dominated by an ‘acid’ rolling bassline. It uses techno ESC cymbals and kicks to create an industrial atmosphere and the typical snare sound usually found in moombahton.

Towards the second half of the first drop, a gated synth is introduced to produce a psychedelic effect. The second drop is preceded by a build consisting of a snare roll and white noise that creates tension. This section is announced by a phrase spoken by a classmate and it combines part of the first drop and the chords and melody presented in the break.

The whole piece is composed in one key and holds no harmonic complexity. The track’s complexity lies in the combination of sounds to create a psychedelic effect at the beginning and a euphoric atmosphere towards the end.

EMILY THOMPSON

Bobbie is a tumultuous piece for piano, the theme for which I wrote a day after the passing of a family member of mine. And so, the key is minor and the chord progression somewhat dissonant. My intention was to create an expressive piece for piano using the knowledge I have from classical training on flute. The structure is such that the theme is introduced then modulated and expanded upon with a somber ending that reiterates it in a new light. Over the year of writing the piece, my world view/disposition would be reflected by the music. The theme itself, a reflection of my grief, the modulated version in the middle section, a reflection of the turbulence and melancholia which accompanies grief, and the last part of the piece, I see as representing the need for resolution.

My second composition, Reformed, is an attempt on my part to use my knowledge of melody to thread together cello and B foot flute. Similarly, to my first composition, I realized that it was difficult to compose following a specific structure and when I tried, the musical development would fall flat. Therefore, I worked on keeping a balance between various melodic developments and the outline of a cohesive structure. I’m inclined to say, “let the music speak for itself,” but, I do have to acknowledge that the piece goes in a lot of directions and I hope this description is helpful for the listener.

Bobbie by Emily Thompson

Reformed by Emily Thompson

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